Travel Health Guide: Netherlands — Bikes, Cannabis Edibles, Lyme in the Veluwe, Measles Resurgence, and What Most US Travelers Get Wrong

The short answer

The Netherlands is one of the safest destinations in the world for an American traveler from an infectious-disease standpoint. You do not need malaria pills, you do not need yellow fever, the tap water is excellent, and food poisoning is rare. The real risks are different: getting hit by a bike or a tram in Amsterdam, overdosing on a cannabis edible because the dose-onset curve fooled you, picking up Lyme disease from a tick in the Veluwe National Park, walking into a measles outbreak if your MMR is out of date, and getting stopped at Schiphol with prescription stimulants or sleep aids that the Dutch consider controlled substances. In my practice, I see returning travelers from the Netherlands far more often for orthopedic injuries and disorientation from edibles than for any bug they caught. Make sure your MMR and Tdap are current, bring a Schengen certificate for any controlled prescription, use insect repellent with DEET or picaridin if you are hiking, and treat space cakes the way you would treat a new medication: low dose, wait, reassess.

Quick facts: Netherlands travel health at a glance

Why the Netherlands earns a separate health guide

When I write a destination guide, I am asking one question: what is going to land somebody in front of me in an ER? For the Netherlands, the answer is not what most US travelers expect. Americans book a long weekend in Amsterdam picturing canals and museums. The medical case-mix I see for returning Netherlands travelers is dominated by three categories, in order: orthopedic injuries (bikes and scooters), accidental cannabis intoxication, and tick-borne disease picked up on a day trip to the countryside. Infectious diseases that worry travelers heading to Africa or Southeast Asia are nearly absent here. That changes how you should prepare. You do not need a travel clinic three months out. You do need to think about safety, not pathogens.

The Netherlands receives more than two million US visitors a year according to NBTC Holland Marketing, with the vast majority arriving through Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS), a top-five European hub for transatlantic connections. Many travelers transit Schiphol on the way to deeper Europe, the Middle East, or Africa. Even a 12-hour layover can expose you to the country's medication-import rules, and a few days in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, or Utrecht is enough time for a bike collision or an edible miscalculation. This guide covers what actually matters.

Vaccines for the Netherlands

The CDC does not require any travel-specific vaccines for the Netherlands. The country has no yellow fever risk, no malaria, no typhoid risk worth prophylaxis, and very low hepatitis A incidence. What you do need is your routine immunization series, which is exactly where I see travelers get caught short.

Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR)

This is the one I will not let a patient skip if they are heading to the Netherlands. The country experienced sustained measles transmission in 2024 and 2025 in low-vaccination communities along what Dutch public health officials call the Bible Belt, particularly in Staphorst, Urk, Putten, and surrounding municipalities in Overijssel, Flevoland, and Gelderland provinces. RIVM, the Dutch national institute for public health, tracks ongoing cluster transmission. The risk to a vaccinated traveler is minimal. The risk to an unvaccinated or partially vaccinated American is real. The CDC's standing guidance is two documented doses of MMR before any international travel, full stop.

If you were born before 1957, you are presumed immune. If you were born in 1957 or later and you cannot find documentation of two MMR doses, get vaccinated before you go. The vaccine takes effect within two weeks. Pregnant travelers should consult their OB about timing, since MMR is contraindicated during pregnancy.

Tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (Tdap)

Make sure your Tdap booster is within 10 years. Cycling injuries, glass cuts at the beach, and gardening scrapes during canal-side picnics are all plausible exposure routes. If you cannot remember your last booster, get one.

Hepatitis B

The Netherlands has low hepatitis B prevalence (under 0.5 percent of the general population per WHO data), so unless you are likely to have unprotected sex, get a tattoo, share needles, or expect medical or dental work, the routine US childhood series is enough.

Hepatitis A

Low risk. Optional for most travelers. I recommend it for long-term residents or travelers planning extensive farm or rural stays.

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE)

Almost never recommended for Netherlands travel. TBE is endemic in central and eastern Europe (Germany, Austria, the Baltics, parts of Scandinavia and the Czech Republic). Sporadic Dutch TBE cases have been documented in the Sallandse Heuvelrug since 2016, but the incidence is too low to justify the three-dose vaccine series for short-term travelers. If you are heading from the Netherlands to Germany or Austria for a longer hiking trip, that is a different conversation. For a Veluwe day hike, skip the TBE vaccine and focus on tick prevention.

Influenza, COVID-19, and routine adult vaccines

Get whatever your primary care physician would recommend for you at home. Long-haul flights and crowded museums are efficient transmission environments. If your most recent COVID booster is more than a year old and you have any risk factors, consider an update.

For the Wandr workflow: vaccines like MMR, Tdap, and hepatitis A are typically administered at your local pharmacy. Wandr books your travel-vaccine appointment at a partner pharmacy near you, and the pharmacist administers the vaccine on-site. No separate doctor's visit, no prescription required.

The biggest risk nobody warns you about: bikes and trams in Amsterdam

The Netherlands has the highest bicycle modal share in the developed world. CBS, the Dutch statistics office, reports more cyclist road deaths than any other Western European country on a population-adjusted basis: roughly 270 cyclist fatalities and well over 100,000 cyclist injuries per year, with non-fatal hospital admissions trending upward as e-bikes have proliferated. The single most dangerous group is older adults on heavy e-bikes, but the second most dangerous group is tourists who do not understand how the road geometry works.

Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, and The Hague are crisscrossed by fietspaden (dedicated bike paths) painted brick-red, fietsstraten (bike-priority streets where cars are guests), and trams running in their own central corridors. As a pedestrian, the lethal mistakes are predictable: stepping off a tram and crossing the bike path without looking left, drifting into the red paint to take a picture of a canal, and assuming any street with a sidewalk is safe to wander into. In my clinical experience treating returning travelers, tibial plateau fractures, clavicle fractures, head injuries from bike-pedestrian collisions, and ankle sprains from tram-track falls are the most common Netherlands-related orthopedic injuries.

What to do:

• Treat the red brick paint like a freeway lane. Do not stand on it, do not photograph from it, do not stop on it.
• Look both ways at every intersection. Dutch cyclists do not stop for jaywalkers and they move fast.
• Be especially careful at tram stops. Step off, wait, look left for cyclists, then cross.
• If you rent a bike, ride defensively, signal turns with your arm, follow bike traffic signals (separate from car signals), and avoid scrolling your phone.
• Helmets are not the cultural norm in the Netherlands, but they remain the single best evidence-based intervention against severe head injury. If you are a tourist who is not used to urban cycling, wear one. No one will judge you. Or if anyone does, you can ignore them.

If you are injured, the European emergency number is 112. Acute care in Dutch hospitals is high-quality and English-friendly, particularly at Amsterdam UMC (Meibergdreef and VUmc campuses), OLVG, Erasmus MC in Rotterdam, and UMC Utrecht. Bring your travel insurance card. Medicare does not travel.

Cannabis tourism: what your friend who has been there did not tell you

The Netherlands tolerates cannabis sales in regulated coffeeshops under a longstanding gedoogbeleid (toleration policy). It is not a free-for-all, and the actual chemistry has changed dramatically over the last 20 years. Modern Dutch coffeeshop cannabis tests at 15-25 percent THC for flower and dramatically higher for concentrates and edibles. The edible problem is not legality. The problem is pharmacokinetics.

A space cake, brownie, or gummy in a Dutch coffeeshop typically contains 15-40 mg of THC. Oral THC has a delayed onset of 60-120 minutes and a peak effect at 2-4 hours, compared with inhaled cannabis which peaks in 10-30 minutes. The mistake I see, over and over, is the tourist who eats half a space cake, feels nothing in 45 minutes, eats the other half, and is then immobilized for the next 12-18 hours with acute panic, tachycardia, vomiting, dissociation, and what they will describe to me later as "the worst experience of my life."

THC overdose is not lethal. There has never been a documented fatality from THC alone. But it lands tourists in Amsterdam emergency departments with high enough frequency that Spoedeisende Hulp staff at OLVG and Amsterdam UMC are practiced at the workup. The treatment is supportive: a quiet room, IV fluids if dehydrated, anti-emetics, sometimes benzodiazepines for severe agitation. You will be fine. You will also have lost a day of your trip.

If you are going to try a Dutch edible, follow these rules:

• Buy from a licensed coffeeshop, not from a street dealer. Coffeeshops have labeled dosing.
• Start with 1/4 of a standard space cake or 5 mg of an edible, whichever is smaller. Lower if you are THC-naive.
• Wait at least 90 minutes before considering more.
• Do not mix with alcohol. The combination causes more vomiting, more dizziness, and more falls.
• Do not drive, cycle, or attempt to navigate the tram system while high. Walk only.
• If you are on any medication that affects the central nervous system, including antidepressants, sleep aids, or anti-anxiety medications, talk to a clinician first. Edibles are far more potent than most tourists realize.
• Children and pregnant travelers should not consume any cannabis product.

For travelers who use cannabis medicinally in a US state where it is legal: the Dutch tolerance policy is not a reciprocal medical-cannabis arrangement. You cannot bring cannabis or cannabis-derived products into the Netherlands or back into the US through customs.

Lyme disease in the Dutch forests

This is the public-health risk most US travelers underestimate. The Netherlands has a high prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, the bacterial complex that causes Lyme disease, in Ixodes ricinus ticks. RIVM estimates approximately 1.5 million tick bites in the Netherlands every year and roughly 27,000 new cases of erythema migrans (the early Lyme rash) annually. Higher-risk areas include the Veluwe National Park, Drenthe (especially Drentsche Aa and Drents-Friese Wold), the Utrechtse Heuvelrug, the Sallandse Heuvelrug, and parts of the Wadden Islands. Tick activity peaks April through October and is highest at the forest-meadow edge.

If your itinerary includes any of the following, treat tick prevention as non-optional:

• A bike trip through the Hoge Veluwe
• A walk through the Kröller-Müller museum's sculpture park
• A nature walk on Texel, Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland, or Schiermonnikoog
• Any organized hike, geocache, or birdwatching tour outside the cities

The prevention stack that works:

• DEET 20-30 percent or picaridin 20 percent applied to all exposed skin
• Permethrin-treated clothing, particularly socks and pants (you treat this at home in the US before you leave; do not try to source it in the Netherlands)
• Light-colored clothing so you can spot ticks
• Long pants tucked into socks for any wooded walk
• A daily full-body tick check, paying attention to behind the knees, the groin, the armpits, the scalp, and the waistline
• Prompt tick removal with fine-tipped tweezers, pulling straight up, slowly and steadily

If you find an attached tick, remove it immediately. Take a photo of the tick after removal. Mark the date and the body location. Watch the bite site for 30 days. Erythema migrans, the classic expanding red rash with central clearing, usually appears 3-30 days after the bite and is the textbook early sign. Other early signs include flu-like illness without respiratory symptoms, profound fatigue, joint pain, and headache.

Lyme disease in early stages is straightforward to treat with a 14-21 day course of doxycycline (or amoxicillin for those who cannot take doxycycline). Treatment is significantly more complicated if you let it progress to late disseminated disease. If you develop a rash, fever, fatigue, joint pain, or facial droop within 30 days of returning from a tick-exposed Netherlands trip, see a clinician and tell them about the tick exposure. Do not wait.

Heat illness: the new Dutch risk

The Netherlands historically had one of Europe's mildest summer climates. That is changing. KNMI, the Dutch meteorological institute, recorded multiple national-record-tying heat events in summer 2025, with Maastricht and the southern provinces exceeding 40 C (104 F) on consecutive days. Amsterdam crossed 35 C (95 F) multiple days. Older travelers and travelers on certain medications are most vulnerable. RIVM and Dutch public health agencies issue heat warnings under the Nationaal Hitteplan when sustained temperatures threaten public health.

If you are traveling in the Netherlands in June, July, or August:

• Check the KNMI weather warning page each morning.
• Carry water; refill at public fountains. Tap water in the Netherlands is safe everywhere.
• Avoid strenuous outdoor activity from 12 noon to 4 pm during heat alerts.
• Be especially careful in older buildings without air conditioning. A surprising number of Dutch hotels and Airbnbs have no AC.
• Know the warning signs of heat exhaustion (heavy sweating, nausea, dizziness, headache, weakness) and heat stroke (hot dry skin, confusion, body temperature above 40 C / 104 F). Heat stroke is a medical emergency. Dial 112 immediately.
• Medications that increase heat-illness risk include diuretics, beta-blockers, anticholinergics, certain antidepressants and antipsychotics, and stimulants. If you take any of these, ask your clinician how to adjust your hydration strategy.

Bringing your prescriptions through Schiphol

This is where Americans most often get blindsided. The Netherlands enforces EU and Dutch controlled-substance import rules, and several common US prescriptions are classified differently in the Netherlands than they are at home.

The Opium Act (Opiumwet) regulates controlled medications in the Netherlands. Schedule I and II substances under Dutch law include:

• Stimulants used for ADHD, including methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta), dextroamphetamine, and amphetamine salts (Adderall, Vyvanse / lisdexamfetamine)
• Strong opioids, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine, fentanyl
• Benzodiazepines and benzodiazepine-like sleep aids, including diazepam, alprazolam, lorazepam, zolpidem, eszopiclone
• Modafinil
• Cannabis-derived medications

For travel within the Schengen area (which includes the Netherlands), the EU framework under Article 75 of the Schengen Implementation Agreement requires travelers carrying these medications for personal use to carry a Schengen certificate, issued by a clinician in the traveler's home country and validated by the home country's competent authority. In practice, US travelers should:

1. Carry the medication in its original pharmacy-labeled container.
2. Bring a letter from your prescribing clinician on letterhead stating: your name, diagnosis, the medication, the dosage, the duration of the trip, and confirmation that the supply is for personal medical use.
3. For Schedule II equivalents (ADHD stimulants, strong opioids), carry no more than a three-month supply and ideally no more than the supply needed for the trip duration.
4. Declare medications if asked by Dutch Customs at Schiphol.
5. For ADHD medications specifically, consider applying for a Schengen certificate or contacting the CIBG (Centraal Informatiepunt Beroepen Gezondheidszorg) in advance. ADHD medications get extra scrutiny at Schiphol, particularly for layovers and onward travel.

Common US OTC medications that are restricted or prescription-only in the Netherlands include certain antihistamines at higher doses, some cough suppressants (codeine-containing), and a few topical steroids. Standard OTC ibuprofen, acetaminophen (paracetamol), loperamide (Imodium), and oral rehydration salts are all available at any Dutch apotheek (pharmacy).

If you take a controlled medication and you have not requested a Schengen certificate, the safer move is to skip the carry-on stash and arrange a refill in the Netherlands at a Dutch pharmacy with a doctor's note. For most US ADHD or sleep prescriptions, this is logistically painful. Plan ahead.

For Wandr's prescription workflow: if you need a non-controlled travel prescription called in before your trip (motion sickness patches, malaria prophylaxis for an onward destination, traveler's diarrhea antibiotic), Wandr's clinicians can send it to your local US pharmacy for pickup before you leave.

Food, water, and traveler's diarrhea

Dutch tap water is among the cleanest in the world, sourced from groundwater and Rhine River filtration with multi-stage treatment. There is no reason to buy bottled water for hydration. Refill your water bottle freely.

Dutch food safety standards are EU-compliant and well-enforced. Traveler's diarrhea risk in the Netherlands is similar to traveler's diarrhea risk in any major US city, which is to say: low, but not zero. Common-sense precautions apply. Wash your hands before meals. If you are not confident about a street-food vendor at a market, skip it. Raw herring (haring) is a Dutch culinary tradition; the herring is flash-frozen before sale, which kills Anisakis parasite larvae, so it is generally safe, but if you have any compromised immune status, skip raw fish.

Specific things to watch for:

• Raw cheese (kaas) is widely consumed; pregnant travelers should stick to pasteurized varieties due to Listeria risk.
• Steak tartare and other raw beef dishes carry a small Salmonella and E. coli risk.
• Mussels and oysters during warmer months can carry norovirus or Vibrio. Cooked is safer than raw.

If you develop traveler's diarrhea, supportive care with oral rehydration solution and loperamide is usually sufficient. If you have fever, bloody stools, or symptoms persisting beyond 72 hours, see a clinician. Wandr can prescribe a stand-by traveler's diarrhea antibiotic (azithromycin or ciprofloxacin) before your trip to call in to your local pharmacy if you want one in your kit for onward travel.

DVT and the long flight to AMS

A direct flight from JFK or EWR to AMS runs 7-8 hours. From SFO or LAX, 10-11 hours. The DVT risk on flights longer than 4 hours is meaningfully higher than baseline, particularly for travelers with personal or family history of clotting disorders, recent surgery, hormonal contraception or HRT, pregnancy, obesity, smoking, or known cancer.

What works:

• Walk the aisle every 1-2 hours
• Pump your calves while seated
• Hydrate with water, not alcohol
• Compression socks (graduated, 15-20 mmHg) for any flight over 6 hours
• For high-risk travelers, talk to your clinician about prophylactic considerations

Aspirin is not first-line DVT prophylaxis for healthy travelers and the evidence does not support routine pre-flight aspirin in the absence of other risk factors. Talk to your clinician.

Signs of DVT include unilateral calf pain, swelling, warmth, or redness, usually appearing in the days to weeks after a long flight. Signs of pulmonary embolism (sudden shortness of breath, chest pain, coughing up blood) require immediate emergency evaluation. Dial 112 in Europe or 911 once you are home.

For a deeper dive on DVT prevention strategies, see our physician's guide to preventing DVT on long flights.

Sun and water safety in the Dutch coastal regions

The Dutch North Sea coast (Scheveningen, Zandvoort, Bloemendaal, Texel) is a popular summer destination with surprisingly strong sun, particularly between 11 am and 3 pm in June and July. Wear SPF 30 or higher, reapply every two hours, and remember that the high latitude does not mean low UV. Cool sea breezes mask sunburn risk.

The North Sea has cold water year-round (typically 10-18 C / 50-65 F), with rip currents at several beaches. Swim at lifeguarded sections only. The Dutch lifeguard system, KNRM, posts daily safety status with a flag system: green safe, yellow caution, red dangerous, double-red prohibited. Respect it.

Jellyfish stings are uncommon in Dutch waters compared with the Mediterranean but do occur. Standard first aid: rinse with seawater (not freshwater), remove tentacles with tweezers, soak in vinegar if available, treat pain with topical lidocaine or oral analgesics.

Mental health and harm reduction

Amsterdam in particular is a destination where travelers often combine alcohol, cannabis, jet lag, and crowded social environments. The combination increases risk of accidents, sexual assault, and acute mental health crises in vulnerable individuals.

• If you have a history of psychosis, mania, severe anxiety, or panic disorder, avoid cannabis and consider whether the trip itself is timed appropriately for your mental health.
• If you are on antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications, do not skip doses to "feel" the trip. Stable medication is your foundation.
• If you are traveling with a friend, agree in advance on a sober person at any given time. Tourist crime risk in Amsterdam concentrates around the Red Light District and Centraal Station at night. Solo intoxicated travelers are the highest-risk profile.

The Netherlands has 24/7 crisis support and excellent psychiatric care, but accessing it as a non-resident traveler is easier through your hotel or your travel insurance company. If you or a companion is in acute danger, dial 112.

Pregnancy and travel to the Netherlands

The Netherlands is a relatively safe destination for pregnant travelers from an infectious-disease standpoint: no Zika, no malaria, no yellow fever risk. The considerations are the same as for any international travel during pregnancy:

• Confirm with your obstetrician that travel is appropriate for your gestational age. Most airlines limit travel after 36 weeks.
• Travel insurance with pregnancy and neonatal coverage is essential.
• Avoid raw cheese, raw fish, undercooked meat, and any cannabis products.
• DVT risk is meaningfully elevated during pregnancy. Compression socks and aisle walks are non-optional on the transatlantic leg.
• Skip the MMR booster if it is not done already; MMR is contraindicated during pregnancy. If you are not immune, postpone travel to areas with active measles transmission until you can be vaccinated postpartum.
• For Lyme prevention, DEET up to 30 percent is considered safe in pregnancy per CDC and ACOG guidance.

Healthcare access for US travelers

The Dutch healthcare system is universal, GP-led, and high-quality. For US travelers without a Dutch insurance card:

• For urgent but non-emergency care, contact the huisartsenpost (after-hours GP service) in your area. Most cities have one accessible through their main hospital. Expect to pay out of pocket and submit to your US travel insurance.
• For emergencies, dial 112 or go to Spoedeisende Hulp (emergency department) at the nearest hospital.
• For dental emergencies, the Tandarts Spoedpost in major cities.
• For prescription refills, a Dutch GP can write a prescription that any apotheek (pharmacy) will fill. Many controlled US medications are not directly substitutable; bring a multi-week supply.
• Major English-friendly hospitals: Amsterdam UMC, OLVG (Amsterdam), Erasmus MC (Rotterdam), UMC Utrecht, HMC Westeinde (The Hague), Maastricht UMC+.

Medicare does not provide coverage abroad. Standard US private insurance plans vary; check before you go. A short-term travel medical policy through Allianz, Travel Guard, World Nomads, or a similar carrier typically costs $40-100 per traveler and provides emergency coverage. Wandr's travel insurance partners can help you find the right plan.

What to pack: my Netherlands travel health kit

• Two-dose MMR documentation (in your wallet or phone, for any clinical encounter)
• Schengen certificate plus pharmacy-labeled bottles for any controlled prescriptions
• Routine prescriptions in original bottles
• DEET 20-30 percent or picaridin 20 percent insect repellent
• Permethrin-treated socks and pants if you are hiking
• Fine-tipped tweezers for tick removal
• Acetaminophen, ibuprofen, loperamide, oral rehydration salts
• SPF 30+ sunscreen and after-sun gel
• A small first aid kit with bandages, antibiotic ointment, blister pads
• Compression socks for the transatlantic flight
• Reusable water bottle
• Travel insurance card and ICE (in-case-of-emergency) contact info in your phone

Frequently asked questions about Netherlands travel health

Do I need any vaccines for the Netherlands? No travel-specific vaccines are required by the CDC for the Netherlands. Make sure your routine immunizations are current, particularly MMR (two documented doses) and Tdap (within 10 years). The CDC recommends MMR for all international travelers because of measles outbreaks in low-vaccination communities globally, including parts of the Netherlands.

Is the tap water safe to drink in the Netherlands? Yes. Dutch tap water is among the cleanest in the world. Drink it freely. There is no need to buy bottled water in any Dutch city or town.

Can I bring my Adderall or other ADHD medication to the Netherlands? Only with a Schengen certificate and a doctor's letter explaining the medical necessity. Adderall, Vyvanse, and methylphenidate are classified as controlled substances under the Dutch Opium Act. Without proper documentation, Dutch Customs at Schiphol can confiscate the medication and fine you. The Schengen certificate must be issued by your prescribing clinician in the US.

Is cannabis legal in the Netherlands and is it safe? Cannabis sale in licensed coffeeshops is tolerated under longstanding Dutch policy. It is not technically legal but it is not prosecuted. The biggest medical risk is overconsumption of edibles. Start with 1/4 of a standard portion or 5 mg of THC, wait at least 90 minutes before considering more, and never combine with alcohol or driving. Cannabis is not safe for children, pregnant travelers, or anyone with a personal or family history of psychosis. You cannot legally bring cannabis into or out of the Netherlands across borders.

What is the risk of Lyme disease in the Netherlands? Higher than most travelers expect. RIVM estimates about 1.5 million tick bites and 27,000 new Lyme infections per year. Risk is concentrated in forested and rural areas, especially Veluwe, Drenthe, Utrechtse Heuvelrug, and the Wadden Islands. Use DEET 20-30 percent or picaridin, treat clothing with permethrin before your trip, do daily tick checks, and watch the bite site for the characteristic erythema migrans rash for 30 days.

Are bikes really that dangerous for tourists in Amsterdam? The most common Netherlands-related injury I see in the ER is from bike or tram collisions involving tourists. The fundamental issue is that tourists do not understand the road geometry: red brick paint is a bike highway, not a sidewalk. Walk only on dedicated pedestrian zones, look both ways twice, never stop on the red paint, and step carefully when exiting trams.

Do I need travel insurance for the Netherlands? Yes. Medicare does not cover care abroad. Standard US insurance often has limited or no international coverage. A short-term travel medical policy is inexpensive and worth it. For an emergency department visit, a tibial plateau X-ray, and a couple of hours of observation, you could be looking at 500-1,500 euros out of pocket without coverage.

Is the Netherlands safe for solo travelers? Very safe by international standards. The main risks are property crime (pickpocketing in tourist-heavy areas) and intoxication-related injuries. Stay alert in the Red Light District at night, avoid mixing substances, and use a registered taxi or public transit rather than walking long distances alone after midnight.

Can I drink alcohol legally and how does it interact with cannabis? Legal drinking age in the Netherlands is 18 for both beer and spirits. Mixing alcohol with cannabis, particularly edibles, sharply increases dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and fall risk. Pick one or the other for the evening if you are going to use cannabis at all.

I am pregnant. Is it safe to travel to the Netherlands? The Netherlands is generally safe for pregnant travelers from an infectious-disease standpoint. Confirm timing with your obstetrician, get travel insurance with pregnancy and neonatal coverage, avoid raw cheese and raw fish, no cannabis, and treat DVT prophylaxis seriously on the transatlantic flight. Skip the MMR if you have not had it, since MMR is contraindicated during pregnancy.

Does Wandr help with travel health for the Netherlands? Yes. Wandr's clinicians can review your itinerary, confirm your routine vaccines are current, book any travel vaccines like MMR boosters at a partner pharmacy near you, and call in non-controlled travel prescriptions (motion sickness patches, traveler's diarrhea antibiotics, malaria pills for onward travel) to your local pharmacy for pickup before you leave. For controlled US prescriptions you need to bring with you, ask your prescribing clinician about a Schengen certificate.

Bottom line

Most US travelers can have a healthy and uneventful trip to the Netherlands with very little preparation. The country's infectious-disease profile is benign. What gets travelers into trouble are the things they do not anticipate: bike collisions in Amsterdam, edible miscalculations in coffeeshops, ticks in the Veluwe, measles exposure in low-vaccination communities, and prescription medications stopped at Schiphol customs. Prepare for those five risks specifically, keep your routine vaccines current, and you will spend your trip looking at canals and Vermeers, not waiting in a Spoedeisende Hulp.

If you want a clinician to review your itinerary, confirm your MMR status, and call in any pre-trip prescriptions you need before you fly, start a visit with Wandr. We handle vaccines through partner pharmacies and call prescriptions in to your local pharmacy for pickup. No travel-clinic appointment, no waiting room.

For other European destinations, see our guides to France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

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Sources

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Travelers' Health: Netherlands. cdc.gov/travel
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Measles cases and outbreaks. Updated 2026.
• RIVM (Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment). Lyme disease surveillance and tick bite statistics.
• RIVM. Measles outbreak updates 2024-2025.
• KNMI (Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute). Heatwave records and national heat warnings.
• CBS (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek). Road traffic fatalities, cyclist statistics.
• World Health Organization. Hepatitis B prevalence by country.
• Schengen Implementation Agreement, Article 75. Personal medication import provisions.
• Dutch Opium Act (Opiumwet). Schedule I and II classifications.
• ACOG Committee Opinion. DEET safety in pregnancy.
• Wandr Health clinical experience treating returning international travelers.